Unilateral ceasefire declared

The Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta (MEND) declared a unilateral ceasefire on the morning of 21 September 2008, following a week of attacks on foreign oil facilities. The ceasefire, which went into effect at 0100 local time on 21 September, was a marked departure from earlier statements that threatened additional attacks on facilities and warned that it would bring Nigeria's oil exports "down to zero." During its week of "Hurricane Barbarossa," the nickname given to MEND's oil war, the group and its militant allies attacked six Royal Dutch Shell facilities; MEND also reportedly attacked U.S. oil firm Chevon and Italy's Agip infrastructure. MEND warned, however, that it will relaunch the oil war if it is attacked again by the Niger Delta's Joint Task Force (JTF). Although the JTF has welcomed the ceasefire, Nigeria's security forces remain cautious, and have declared that they will continue to closely monitor developments in the region.